Video: Meet the real girl from viral Pope Francis picture in UAE

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The girl was mistakenly identified by the name Gabriela.

Abu Dhabi (ANN)-Remember the powerful image of the courageous young girl who broke through the crowd and ran towards Pope Francis at the historic Papal mass in Abu Dhabi? Her name is not Gabriela. The picture is that of 8-year-old Valery Sanchez.

Contrary to several media reports that
followed when the image went viral this week, the brave Colombian girl
has in fact been living in the UAE for more than two years. She is the
daughter of Andres Sanchez Rios, a prisoner at the Al Aweer Central
Jail. Her friend, 6-year-old Gabriela Atehortua – the girl mistakenly
identified in the viral picture – made the dash towards the Pope with
her.

Like Valery, she was blessed by His Holiness,
who, during the Papal mass, ordered security to stop the popemobile so
he could greet the girls. And like Valery, her father Jason Atehortua is
an inmate in Dubai too.

The duo’s spur-of-the-moment dart towards the
Pope was a desperate plea to beg for their fathers’ forgiveness. And
their hope is that they’ll be reunited with them one day.

“We tried to reach out to the Pope because in
some of the countries he visits, an amnesty for the release of
non-violent prisoners sometimes happens. We saw it as our only hope,”
Andrea Sanchez and Jessica Atehortua (mothers of the girls) told Khaleej
Times in a full interview at their home in Dubai.

Now, they are hoping to get another letter,
which has been translated into Arabic, to His Highness Sheikh Mohammed
bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and
Ruler of Dubai.

“We have written to him, telling of our story. He is kind. We hope he will receive it.”

In the heartwarming encounter caught on camera
on Tuesday, Valerie and Gabriela slipped underneath the security
fencing, which separated the crowd from the Pope. Against the backdrop
of cheers from onlookers within Zayed Sports Stadium, they made a
beeline for his moving car; both girls in tears.

While the emotional dash was not planned, they
did enter the stadium with the hopes of getting two pieces of paper to
the Pope: the first, an image hand-drawn by the girls depicting each of
them walking hand-in-hand with their fathers under the Colombian,
Argentinian and UAE flags.

Valery, the real girl from viral Pope
Francis picture in UAE speaks to Khaleej Times about her iconic photo.
She was joined by Gabriela, who made the dash towards the Pope with her.
(KT photo: Abhishek Sengupta)

The second, a letter penned by the girls and
their mothers back in December. It said “we are three women, with two
little girls” and spoke of their fathers sorrow for their crime, saying
they have “learned their lesson and have deep regrets”.

In documents shared with Khaleej Times, it
showed both men were arrested in July 2015 for house robbery. They were
subsequently sentenced to 13 years in prison in February 2016.

“This country is beautiful but we are
suffering here without our husbands. They deeply regret what they have
done, they are asking for forgiveness. They want to apologise to their
complainants too. For us, we just want our daughters to be reunited with
their fathers for good.”

Due to financial issues, Valery is studying in
Dubai but Gabriela is not in school. However, the fivesome, along with
Andres’ mother, do not want to leave the UAE for Colombia.

“If we do, the girls will be far from their
fathers. That will bring them great pain so we are torn between staying
and going,” they said.

Following their encounter with the Pope on
Tuesday, the mothers said both children are praying it won’t be long
until they can travel home to Colombia, each with their father in tow.

“The kids are thinking a release will happen
soon. They’re not sleeping, only talking about the moment they will see
their fathers again,” Andrea said.

kelly@khaleejtimes.com

Timeline: How the viral moment unfolded

January 18 – Applied online via www.uaepapalvisit.org for tickets to the Papal mass.

February 3 – Registration confirmed and physical tickets received.

February 4

5pm – Set off from home in Dubai. Took metro to Noor Bank station and walked 45-minutes to bus stop to catch bus to Abu Dhabi.

2.30am – Got access to outer stadium. Doors were due to open at 5.30am but they were let in early.

5.30am – Checked ticket
number for seats: Entrance 26, Section 26, Row M, Seats 35-39. Realised
they were seated up high, far away from the main altar and no way near
where Pope would be passing by the crowd.

5.30am-7.30am – Launched plan
to get better access to seats. Walked around the outside of the stadium
to see if they could get closer to the area where the Pope would be
passing by. Security checked tickets several times and rejected them,
pointing them in direction of original seating area in Entrance 26.
Looked around for others ways in but could not find any.

7.45am – Spotted a small door
near a nearby entrance. Started speaking to a Spanish lady seated in
the area. They explained that Gabriela and Valery wanted to hand a
letter to the Pope. Lady offered to take letter and try and hand it to
him during drive around stadium. Andrea and Jessica refused.

7.50am – They noticed people
coming from toilet area with children and returning back to stadium
floor seats without tickets being checked. They followed, each holding
Gabriela and Valery’s hand. They got through.

8am – Got to seating area
positioned in front of stadium and stood at the back row, sitting down
in someone’s seat every time they left to go to the toilet. They didn’t
want to be spotted standing the whole time, so changed seat positions
three times.

9am – Spotted one woman
sitting in the back row with empty seats by her. The lady saw the
children and ushered the women and girls to sit down.

10.15am – Pope Francis arrives in car. Jessica and Andrea plan to lift the young girls up on their shoulders and extend them out to His Holiness so they can hand him letter. Gabriela and Valery slip from their hands, move under the fencing and dash towards the Pope. He orders car to stop and security lift the girls up towards him where he blesses them.

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About the Author

admin - Arraale Mohamoud Jama Freelance Journalist and Human Rights Activist
Arraale, is a 20 year experience as a professional Journalist and human rights activist Over the years, worked for the major News Papers in Somaliland as a reporter, editor and contributor. 2008 established website Araweelo News Network, he currently runs a web site based in Somaliland. who is the specializes in the investigation and reporting on issues relating to human rights, democracy, and good governance. contact: Info@araweelonews.com jaamac132@gmail.com Send an SMS or MMS to + 252 63 442 5380 WhatsApp + 252 65 910 7347.